KASEY WILLSON has been a lifelong friend of mine and I am grateful she ventured this path, because she is now also an extremely valued health professional that I seek treatment from often (as well as a long list of other clientele). She is a beautiful and caring soul, and her knowledge and passion for her work is unsurpassed. This lovely bride-to-be, friend and Naturopath is certainly making something of herself and moving forward all the time and I highly recommend her for all your health needs! Take this chance to get to know her…
What does “healthy” mean to you? Healthy means performing at your very best; physically, emotionally and mentally. Optimal health is feeling and looking fabulous! Why did you become a Naturopath? I became a Naturopath to help others. Chronic illness is on the rise, so I see a real need to improve the health and happiness of others. What plans do you have for the future of your business? Along with my busy Naturopath clinic, I also have my own health blog. This is a way for me to inspire others and improve the health of a greater number of people (than I can in clinic). I have more writing (books and blogs) and speaking planned for this year, with a very exciting online community project coming up towards the end of the year. How are you helping people improve their quality of life? As a Naturopath and Nutritionist, my passion is working to improve the health and happiness of others through encouraging a nourishing diet. This is a big one for many! In my Naturopath clinic, I specialise with women’s hormonal health and use nutritional and herbal medicine to support the body back to balance. How important is the health of not only the body, but the mind, in improving quality of life? Your mindset affects the function of the cells in the body, so practising de-stressing techniques and/or therapy on a daily basis is a must in today’s high stress society. Without a healthy and relaxed mindset, you can be eating and moving well, but you will not experience true health and happiness. An example which I see time and time again is gut disturbances in highly stressed people. Have you had hypnotherapy before and if so, describe your experience? Yes, I find it very soothing and effective at getting to the underlying cause of health issues. A wonderful treatment for bad habits! Have you always been healthy? Please share a little bit of background… I haven’t always been healthy and it has been quite a rocky road to get where I am today. Here is my personal journey… Growing up on a cattle property on beautiful Kangaroo Island, my childhood was filled with the company of animals, open spaces and fresh air. A whole farm to ride my horses around, a loving family and caring friends…I couldn’t have asked for a better upbringing. Although I remained active through sports, as I grew into my late teens, the lifestyle I led quickly turned into the typical party girl scene. My weekend horse rides were exchanged with ‘all-nighter’ celebrations with friends and were fuelled by excessive intake of sugary alcoholic drinks and very poor dietary choices. I was only young, and I was filling my body with a toxic cocktail of binge drinking, refined carbohydrates, synthetic hormones (from the oral contraceptive pill) and to top it off, sleep deprivation. It was only a matter of time before my body would show me signs of poor health. In year 11, I started to develop signs of a chronic candida (fungal) condition. Thrush infections were constant; I struggled with ongoing foul moods; energy and concentration levels were poor and I had very unhealthy bowel habits. Unaware at the time, my chronic candida infection was causing me multiple food intolerances. I was also unfit and not an ideal weight. Many emotional stressors (that were predominantly bottled up inside) throughout my late teens and early 20′s contributed to my symptoms. It was a big vicious cycle and I was not on the road to a healthy and happy future. It wasn’t until I began my Naturopathy and Nutrition studies, that I started to realise the damage I was doing to my body. The pieces of my health puzzle came together! I researched the underlying causes of my presenting heath challenges and discovered how important Nutritional medicine was for my healing journey. This important support gave me the power to overcome my health conditions and genuinely feel healthy and happy again. Using my knowledge, experience and understanding, I now have the privilege of helping many others overcome their health challenges and reach their personal health and happiness potential. I want everyone to realise it is never too late to change your habits! How would you summarise a general day in your life, from start to end? My day usually goes something like this: 5:20am-6:15am: Time to wake! I always start the day with my favourite drink, lemon juice in warm water to kick start my metabolism, cleanse the liver and kidneys, as well as getting my digestive system ready for the food to follow. I sip this through a glass straw to protect my tooth enamel. Twice a week, I wake earlier and do a short high intensity workout. I find PACE Express, designed by Dr Al Sears really gets my heart rate up and sweating in a short but sweet workout. Now that it’s warmer weather, I’ve otherwise been going to an early morning hot yoga session, in place of the home exercise. I’ll follow my lemon water with a fresh vegetable juice, my favourite mix being the My Health My Happiness Green Start, but I tend to just chuck in whatever vegetables I have in the fridge, with majority being green. The days where I’m not in a rush to yoga, while enjoying my juice, I’ll take a walk in my backyard, breathe the fresh air and admire my ever growing vegetable patch. I’m proud of these babies 6.45am (or later if I went to yoga) I make up a more substantial brekkie to get me through the big day ahead. This varies between My Health My Happiness Green Start Smoothie, My Health My Happiness Protein Power Smoothie (found in my 21 Day Summer Detox) Chia Seed Puddings (soaked chia seeds with various super foods), my own nut and seed muesli mixes with nut milk or coconut yoghurt, coconut pancakes, or cooked eggs with herbs and vegetables. If I’m not feeling hungry enough to finish off what I’ve prepared, I’ll pack it along with my lunch for the day in a glass container, to enjoy mid-morning. I follow my brekkie with a mixture of supplements, some being daily and other which vary around every fortnight, depending on the areas of my body I feel need the most support. 8.30am: I always start the day in clinic with a herbal tea. This helps me feel alert and to be honest, I’m a very habitual person so I also find it quite comforting. I’ll sip on filtered or spring water mid-morning as well. 10.00am: Usually by this time I’m getting peckish, so in between patients I will snack on nuts (I rotate each day with the type of nuts I have), seeds (hemp, pumpkin, sunflower), avocado by itself, or in a small salad. This keeps me full and stabilises my blood sugar levels until lunchtime. 12.30pm: This is when I am feeling hungry enough for my lunch. I try to have my meals on time each day, to help set up strong digestion. Lunch usually consists of leftover organic meat, chicken or wild caught local fish (I like Tommy Rough, Whiting, Snapper). I will always keep ‘Good Fish’ Sardines in the pantry for the days that I don’t have any leftover protein to take for lunch. With the protein, I make sure to get in a good 3 handfuls of either green salad or vegetables (both cooked and some fermented). I find avocado helps to fill me up with lettuce salad mixes. I’ll dress salad with a lemon juice and a small amount of olive or hemp seed oil and garnish with fresh herbs. If I have enough time, I’ll change into my sporty gear and go for a walk in my lunch break too. 3.00pm: Peppermint tea time. I may have a piece of fruit here, otherwise vegetable sticks with nut butter, homemade dip or tahini. 5.30pm-6.00pm: On my drive home, I’m getting hungry and ready for tea. I try not to eat too much, but will nibble on a few more nuts if I really can’t wait (I have a 1 hour drive home in peak hour), but I try to keep to no more than 1 handful of nuts per day. I may fit in a 6pm yoga session, so those nights I will have had a more decent snack in the afternoon, and only have a very light meal when I get home. 6.30pm-7.30pm: On the nights I don’t get home until late, I’m lucky enough to come home to tea already being prepared (thanks Tom!). Otherwise my favourites I prepare vary between curries, stir-fry, baked meat and steamed veg, soups or a big fresh salad. Through the week I plan to rotate the types of proteins I eat, as well as the vegetables and salads which we enjoy alongside. I always cook my meals in coconut oil and use all organic produce (either from my garden, fresh from farmers markets, or my local supermarkets organic section). I aim to incorporate homemade bone broths into all my cooking, otherwise will drink a cup by itself, for maintaining good gut health. 8.30pm: I’ll enjoy either a ginger, chamomile, peppermint or dandelion herbal tea after dinner (I try to wait at least 1 hour). I find this helps cleanse my palate and reduces any cravings for sweets. If however we have eaten early, I’ll have a small snack of either coconut yoghurt, a bliss ball, a couple of squares of loving earth dark chocolate (coconut sugar sweetened) or as an occasional treat, my famous hot chocolate (found in Winter Warmers). I aim to have an epsom salt bath 2 times per week, and the other days I will dry body brush before a shower. 9.30pm-10.00pm: If I’m not in bed by this time, I don’t feel fully refreshed the next day. I usually do some reading (for pleasure, not work related), meditation and/or stretches and head off to bed by latest 10.00pm. Weekends: Weekends are a bit different, depending on whether I am working in clinic or not. I generally try to sleep in and get as much healthy exposure to the sun as possible. Farmers markets, gardening, beach walks, camping and catch ups with friends and family make up a perfect weekend for me! What advice do you have for people wanting to improve their quality of life? Follow others who inspire and motivate you. Adopting a healthier lifestyle needs to be fun! What is a valuable lesson from your personal health journey that you have learned? Never give up! As far away as your health goal seems, it is achievable. You will always have something that you can improve on, so just keep making small changes and these will soon form healthy habits and therefore a healthier, happier version of you! Who are your inspirations or go to gurus that you want to share with us? I have lots! Chris Kesser, Dr David Pearlmutter, Dr Natasha McBride, Dr David Brownstein, Nora Gedgaudas, Mark Sisson, Sherrill Sellman, Kelly Brogan MD, Dr Brett Hill, The Wellness Guys, Aviva Romm MD, Louise Hay, Chef Pete Evans, Dr Christiane Northrup….. the list goes on…
Thanks Chantelle, I am very happy to be featured as part of your ‘Wellness Wednesdays’! Your positive holistic health message is wonderful x
Thank you Kasey – it is my privilege to feature you!
It is certainly my plan to educate and inspire people on the holistic health approach; that both body and mind need to be nurtured for optimum health results! Xx